Valentine's Day
by Gimp666
Summary: Valentine 2007 Short vday fic with Rock and Forte, about the other kind of love people don't seem to remember these days. Love 2008 Short X/Zero romance like thing. V-day doesn't have to be perfect.
1. Valentine

This is not my usual work at all. Oh well, happy V-Day guys. And remember, it's not always about the romance.

gimp666

Valentine

Rock sighed, sitting amidst a hurricane of papers of every size and colour. Valentine's Day was tomorrow, and he still had so many cards to do. "Roll, could you pass me the purple paper, please? I want to make a special border around this one."

Roll smiled, passing it to him. "Here you go!" She passed it over, sparing a glance at his work. "Ooh, that looks so nice! Who is it for?" She couldn't help but feel a little surprised, Rock was good at many things, but visual arts was not one of them. He must have put a lot of work into this one, it showed in all the small details on the card. She returned to her work, snipping paper to make a string of connected hearts to use as her own border.

Rock paused mid-snip, blinking at her. "Oh, this? It's for Blues. We hardly ever get to see him, so I thought I'd do something nice for him." He grabbed the glue, pasting the border around a big heart centered on the card and held it up What do you think? Looks like a real store bought card, huh?"

Roll looked it over scrupilously, appraising it. I think he'll love it. Do you know his address, then?" She couldn't be bothered to keep up with that information; Blues changed houses the way people changed their clothing. She never knew where he'd be living, week to week, month to month. Rock always seemed to stay on top of that information though, something she found both exasperating and cute at the same time.

Rock nodded slightly. "Of course I do, he's been at this place for awhile now, almost three weeks." He couldn't resist a small smile. "It's actually not that far from here. I think he moved there to keep an eye on us secretly. He hasn't stayed in one place that long for awhile now." He paused momentarily, looking the card over thoughtfully. "Maybe I'll bring it to him in person. If I went right now, I could probably beat him home from work and slip it under his door. What do you think?"

Roll nodded a little, smiling. "I think that's a great idea." It was good, she thought, for Rock to have a good friend he could see now and again. Especially after the ruse Forte had put him through. Rock had finally met a friend – A frobot just like him. But that had turned out to be a sham, and Forte had ended up being (unsurprisingly, in her eyes) a Wily bot.

Rock smiled and tucked the card into an envellope. "Do you have any glitter? I want to make a special signature in it for him." She shook her head and he sighed. "Well.. I suppose I'll just have to go get some. Might as well bring it with me so I can just do it there." He smiled, slipping his coat and a pair of shoes on. "I'll be back in a few hours, okay? I want to pick up something for dessert."

Roll smiled and nodded, returning to her cards.

whooooo!

Rock hummed quietly, trudging through the snow. It was beautiful, but always came at such a high price. He imagined a human's feet would probably be numb by now, his own weren't too far themselves. Sure, he could just call his armor on, and the climate control would have him feeling toasty in no time, but Rock was trying to go with something a little more... low key. As he headed toward the art shop downtown, he couldn't help but notice the boy.

He was tucked away into a corner, curled up tight and shivering heartily. Rock stared in disbelief. The poor boy was wearing a faded t-shirt and worn jeans, but nothing else. It was a wonder he wasn't dead already.

"Oh!" He gasped, abandoning the shovelled sidewalk and mass of people doing last minute shopping for their sweethearts. None of them threw so much as a glance in either of their directions. "You must be freezing!" He exclaimed, grabbing the boy's hand and pulling him to his feet. The boy's fingers were stiff and frozen looking. "Come on, there's a cafe a few doors over, I'll get.. you... some..." He broke off quietly, staring down at the boy.

The boy looked puzzled, grateful, and outraged, all at once. "...O...okay..." He got up awkwardly, half frozen, and followed him cautiously. He stared at Rock, showing no sense of recognition.

Rock was grateful for that. Oh god, why did he always get himself in these messes. The boy standing before him was none other than Forte, that much he was sure of. The purple stripes on his cheeks had been covered or removed somehow, but there was no disguising those eyes. In fact, it looked like he hadn't even tried. There they were, red as rubies and with a look as hard as them too. No, it was definitely Forte – that much he was sure of. Still, he was accepting his act of kindness, and he did look cold...

squee!

Forte stared up at him quietly from over his cinnamon flavoured hot chocolate with heart shaped marshmallows; a festive special. It was warm, at least. And free. This, however, also made him a little nervous. There was no disputing that saying 'There's no such thing as a free meal', because he'd never come across one yet. It always came at some price, he just hoped that such a nice looking kid wouldn't want anything too out to lunch from him.

Rock, meanwhile, was being his usual chatty self, telling all about the flowers he'd bought in secret for his sister, and how surprised he thought she'd be to find them. "Oh!" He touched his lips lightly, as if signalling himself to stop talking so much. "What are you doing for Valentine's Day? It's tomorrow, you know. Are you doing anything with your loved ones?" Forte had a lot of brothers, he had to have something planned.

Forte glanced up a little, looking surprised. "...no." He paused, sipping his hot chocolate. "I have no loved ones."

This surprised Rock. Out of all those Wily bots, he didn't have one... not one single friend? "Not one? Not even a little? Surely you have friends--"

"I have no friends." Forte frowned a little. The boy was prying.

"Surely there's someone you love, even a-"

"I don't believe in love."

Rock stopped, taken aback by that. That was a conversation killing statement, alright. That had stopped the conversational flow dead in its tracks. "... what... what do you mean?" He chuckled, but it was nervous sounding, he'd been thrown off his groove with that. "I mean.. that's like saying you don't believe in... in... forests... or dogs... How can you not believe in something that clearly exists?"

Forte cocked his head to the side slightly. "What proof is there that love exists? You can't touch it, or feel it. You can't even categorize it clearly, because it means different things to different people. Love is just a foolish concept that people created so they wouldn't have to feel lonely."

"Are you lonely?"

Forte scoffed at that a little. "I don't have time to worry about emotions like that."

Rock sighed. That meant yes. He stood up, smiling a little, and unravelled the scarf from around his neck, draping it around Forte's. He pushed his gloves across the table to him and slid his coat off, dropping it over Forte's shoulders. "You don't have to feel lonely anymore. You never know where you might find people who care about you." He turned to leave, then blinked. Blues... Blues would understand. It was the right thing to do, after all. "Happy Valentine's Day, Forte." He set the card down in front of him and left quickly, calling his armor on as he went out the door.

Forte stared on in bewildered silence. "Rock... Rock...man?" He jumped to his feet suddenly, ready to attack on instinct, then blinked slowly. It was warm... and the hot chocolate was good. He'd get him next time, for sure. Slowly he settled back down. Besides, he had a valentime to make, didn't he?

Epilogue

Rock sat amidst the litter of cards he'd received for Valentine's day. Some were from fans, some from friends, and a few more important ones were from family. He glanced over at Roll, smile widening. She was sniffing her roses, she'd adored them, as he knew she would. In fact, everyone had loved their stuff, even Blues, even though the card he'd given him had been considerably plainer.

He was just polishing off his box of chocolates when he heard a slight noise from outside. Someone was slipping a card through the mail slot. He got up quickly, curious, and caught it as it fell in the room, opening the door. It was addressed to him.

He tore the envelope open eagerly, reading over what lay inside.

Rockman,

Happy Valentine's Day.

You left yourself wide open, you know. You're just lucky I'm nice. I knew it was you the whole time. Thanks for the winter gear, hope you're not expecting it back.

Forte.

P.S – Maybe I believe a little...

Rock grinned and threw the door open quickly, looking around. No one was there. Unsurprising, really. He should have opened the door sooner. There were, however, a sole set of footprints, leading to, then away from the door. He stepped out onto the porch more and called out in the direction they left.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Forte!!"


	2. Love

A/N: Aaaand here is my massively late v-day fic LOL. Sorry guys, but I broke my glasses so this didn't get typed out for a few days longer than expected. XD;;;

Last year I did the whole "It doesn't have to be romantic love, V-day can be about 'agape'. This year, I did the whole "it doesn't have to be a picture perfect evening to be special" XD;;; dork

Anyway, enjoy! It's kind of rushed but such is my life anymore XD;;;;

_**The Garnet is a stone of purity and truth as well as a symbol of love and compassion. It is the stone of passion and courage. Stimulates devotion to your family, your friends, yourself, and your purpose or goals. It will stimulate the senses, and increase your vitality and stamina. Inspires romantic love, passion, sensuality, sexuality, intimacy, positive thoughts, inspiration, commitment, and self-confidence.**_

**Love**

X lay on an awkward slant in bed, slumped against a scarce few pillows and staring out the window, depressed. To say he was bored was more than an understatement. It was a gross miscalculation, almost a lie. He had been bored three days ago, when he had first regained his senses and realized the circumstance he was in. At that point, boredom had been the most he could muster. Since then, he had gone from bored to listless, then apathetic. Now he was just depressed.

There were only two, remotely interesting things to keep him from going completely insane at this point. The first was the view – a frozen pond with a few lonely trees that were stripped of their leaves and somehow all the more beautiful for it. In the last few days he had witnessed the snow slowly dripping off the bare branches, forming beautiful icicles that caught the light perfectly, and then last night it had snowed, dumping cold white powder overtop of them.

Depressing. Still, it was no surprise that the scenery still interested him after three days – he was, most unfortunately _not_ at his quarters, so the landscape was all knew to him. And still, even now he was starting to lose any real interest in it. It was, at most, a distraction to keep him from thinking about how sore he was.

The only other source of entertainment he had left was in the bed next to his.

Zero had been beside him when the explosion had gone off under his feet. Both had been completely oblivious of the trap laid beneath the floor they were standing on, although Zero had sensed something at the end – he had always knew when something was about to happen. His hand clamped down tightly on X's arm, but by that point it had been too late. He was a little further away from the explosive device than X had been, so when things had started flying and crashing down around them, he had missed the worst of it.

X, however, hadn't been as lucky.

Standing at the epicentre of the explosion, X had retained a heavy amount of damage to his legs from the head of the explosion, and to his back, from the way his lower body had been slammed upward from the ground with such force. He had also had shrapnel and god knew what else rain on him after the initial charge went off. The falling wreckage hadn't done anything to improve his situation.

Both Zero and himself were built differently from common reploids, which made repairs more complicated than they really should have been. The technicians just didn't have anything to work off of. Sometimes it was better to just let things run their course and allow their auto-repair function to take care of the damage itself.

That was why he was still lying on his back and staring out the window, instead of being back to the regular swing of things and getting ready to spend time with Zero on Valentine's day, just a month after their anniversary. X sighed, running his fingers through his hair slowly. It let him think when he was stressed like this. He didn't want to be here, this place was giving him a real sense of claustrophobia. He gazed at Zero quietly, gauging how deep his unconsciousness was. The blonde was snoring lightly, clearly not going to wake up anytime soon. The scenery wasn't entertaining enough for this anymore, he needed to take a nap and clear his head a little.

It seemed as though he was hardly ever lucky when it came to these things. He really wanted to talk to Zero, but in the end he decided it would be better to just try to get some rest and try to talk to Zero when he woke up again. It seemed as though their relationship just took an unfortunate, downward spin.

Of all the days for him to be lying in bed, too injured to enjoy the rest that he was getting, it just had to be on Valentine's day. It didn't help that Zero was less sore, in higher spirits, and sleeping better. It wasn't just any Valentine's day either. This marked their fifth Valentine's day together – it was a milestone, and they were going to spend it like this, out of commission and filled with discomfort. It was a shitty day, to say the least. So much for the romance he'd been hoping for.

He closed his eyes and let himself slip into unconsciousness rather abruptly. It was a trick he had taught to himself, considering how little chance for sleep they had these days. Right now he just wanted the day to be over with.

Zero sat up in bed, legs dangling over the edge, and thought contemplatively about the situation at hand. He hadn't tried what he was about to attempt yet, and he wasn't sure if his legs were going to carry his weight or not, but he couldn't just lie around in his bed all day. It was a small risk anyway, if it didn't work it meant he would have to deal with the embarrassment of being carried back to bed, but that was about that. He could deal with that when he weighed things out. X was really upset about something, and he was pretty sure he knew something that would cheer him up.

X was taking being holed up in the repair ward in a bed on Valentine's day pretty bad. Personally, Zero couldn't see the problem, after all, the person he was involved with was staying mere feet from him anyway, but he wouldn't say that to the brunette. He knew how deeply X had been looking forward to spending the evening together, and it was their fifth Valentine's day… He'd had something special he wanted to give X this year, and it was just what X needed to cheer up a little.

Which led him to his current situation. The present he got for X was back in his room. Which meant he'd have to go on a rescue mission to get it. He was aching, and walking was still difficult for him, but he wasn't completely immobilized from the waist down the way X had been, and he was determined to get the little box from under his mattress come hell or high water.

He'd been involved with X for over five years now, and he had come to know the shorter man very well by this point. X had dropped the hint on more than a few occasions that he really wanted to get more serious in their relationship. It was only natural that a landmark year like this should be this, and in reality it was long overdue.

It wasn't that bad an idea in actuality, but at first Zero had fought X on the matter tooth and nail. It wasn't that he didn't want to get closer – he'd known a long time ago that X was the only person for him. It was the fear that once they'd gotten close enough something would happen to X that kept him away. It was because of this that he'd had trouble dating X in the first place, something X luckily understood, he imagined from time to time that the brunette was in the same position as him.

X was, and always would be a weak spot for Zero; once known by the mavericks, it was a hell of a weapon to use against him. Finally, X had sat him down and talked to him about it, and they'd finally become involved. Now he found himself in almost the same position, because what he was thinking was the equivalent of what humans called "marriage". Still, he felt he was finally ready to hand another step forward.

He propelled himself to his feet with a slight wince, then started the both literal and proverbial march forward into the deep end of relationships. He just hoped that enough of the repair technicians had gone home for the night that he could sneak there and back before someone noticed. How ironic would it be if after finally working up the nerve to get his present and bring it to X, to be stopped by a disgruntled hunter "for his own good".

X stirred slightly, mind chugging along at an agonizingly slow pace as he fought his way out of the realm of sleep and back into the waking world. It was dim in the room now, the afternoon seemed to have escaped him at some point – not that he minded. His throat was thick with sleep still, and he wanted a drink of water something fierce, something easier said than done.

He started the slow work of leaning up far enough to reach the glass of water by his bed, when a cool hand slid behind his head and tilted it for him. A hand brought the glass to his lips gently, and he sipped a little before curiosity got the better of him. The liquid was cool and smooth against the rough dryness lining his throat. Okay... this was a new development.

He opened his eyes again, wanting to see who had been sitting around awkwardly, waiting for him to wake up. He wondered briefly if Alia was back again with more news – mostly gossip – for him. Then his eyes adjusted to the dark and a blush found its way to his cheeks.

Zero was out of bed again and had settled down into the chair next to his bed. He smiled gently at X, still holding his head up. "Hey... hurry up and drink, your head's heavy." he murmured teasingly, but X saw there was some truth to what he was saying. He looked pale and drawn, face haggard from the journey back to his room earlier. X didn't know about that, and he wasn't sure what was wrong with the blonde. It didn't take a genius, however, to tell that Zero was clearly exhausted and in need of some serious rest. What had he been _doing_? He drank gratefully.

Zero sighed in relief as the brunette drank back the glass of water he'd offered him, then set the glass back on the stand and slid a pillow behind his head. He loved X, but his arms had a raw ache in them, and the smaller man's head wasn't getting any lighter. "Does that feel alright?" He asked politely, not wanting to take the glass from his lips too soon.

X smiled up at him, blushing. "A lot better. My throat's been so dry." A concerned frown wrinkled his otherwise flawless brow. "Are you alright? You're really pale. Are you sure you're even supposed to be out of bed?" He reached down painfully, and gripped onto his hand gently.

Zero leaned down carefully, and kissed his cheek softy. "I'm fine. The perfect example of health." He sat up straighter, as if to show him, and his back popped audibly. He groaned softly, resting a hand on his lower back and sighing, and X couldn't hide the small giggle that followed.

"I can see that!" he teased, just happy to spend time with the blonde." What did you do, run a marathon while I was napping?" He rubbed Zero's hand with his thumb gently, pulling it up to his lips carefully and kissing it.

Zero smiled, kissing his forehead lightly. He had, over the years, managed to make a hobby out of kissing X whenever and wherever he could manage to steal one, and it was nice to have privacy for a change. "Something like that." He murmured softly, pulling the blankets up higher over X's body and holding his hand.

X smiled gratefully, leaning against him as best he could with the railing in the way. "I'm sorry we couldn't have had a romantic Valentine's day... It's actually pretty crappy. " He paused, cheeks brightening slightly as Zero leaned closer, whispering in his ear softly.

"Actually, this is the best one we've had yet." he murmured softly with a slight wink. He couldn't help a slight snort at the confused look on X's face. It was clear he hadn't made the connection.

"What do you mean?" X asked tentatively, baffled by the blonde's remark. Had their dates really been that bad? He hadn't thought they were. In fact, considering how the majority of them ended, he couldn't understand any complaints at all. They didn't have a lot of time for each other, it sometimes seemed, but it was about quality, not quantity, and despite what the general public thought, he was as big a nymphomaniac as Zero was.

Zero got up, wincing a little, and slid into bed with him, back starting to throb from sitting for so long. He kissed the top of his head, choosing his words thoughtfully. "Usually we have to rush our way through dinner, miss our reservations, or have to leave before we even eat because we're on call."

X frowned a little, thinking that over. As much as he hated to admit it, it was true. "Yeah... you do have a point there." He sighed, hating to think of how rushed and chaotic their romantic life was sometimes. Okay, more than a point... There were always meetings, battles, training... something. He found himself surprised things had even gotten this bad without him knowing, as if it had crept up on them.

"I think this is the first one we've been able to just relax through." Zero murmured quietly, looking reflective. "Oh... I'm not blaming you, or trying to make you feel guilty. I'm very happy with you. I couldn't picture myself with anyone else." He kissed X's hand gently, smiling at him.

"S-so am I, love..." X felt immense heat rise to his face at the comment, surprised. Zero didn't talk romance very often, and it got him every time. "Mmh... and I agree with you. You're absolutely right. I hadn't even noticed." He couldn't resist a slight giggle. " We should do this every year. Only not so overboard next year."

Zero chuckled softly, cuddling closer to the brunette, then blinked when he felt his present press against their hips lightly from his pocket. "Oh! Anyway, I got this for you." He pulled the smooth, thin box out of his pocket and hoped for once that X would withhold any dirty comments for a few minutes. X stared at the box curiously, obliging. He stared at it for a moment longer, then held it out, offering it to his boyfriend.

X took it from him eagerly and opened it, gasping. It was a necklace - a locket to be specific. Opening it up carefully, he found a small picture of the two of them on the left side. On the right... "Oh... _Zero_! Is... is that what I think it is?" X gaped quietly. Embedded in the right side of the locket was a deep red stone - the colour of passion and love. It was the reploid equivalent of a wedding ring.

Things were different among reploids than from humans. Reploids could live a lot longer than a human, but more often than not, their life expectancy was a mere decade, partially due to the mavericks. Because of this, they had no real wedding ceremonies. Instead, a piece of jewellery, usually a necklace or bracelet, was given in secret. Contained in the jewellery was a single garnet, though most reploids referred to it by a different name.

Zero took the locket from him gently, unfastening the clips and holding it up to his chest, liking the way the silver looked against X's pale flesh. "Yeah... it's an eternity stone. I had it set on the inside of the locket, in case you still want to keep a low profile about us." His face was burning, and he knew he was blushing, but he wanted to do things slowly, properly. "So what do you say?"

X worked his jaw slowly, realizing he was gaping but unable to do anything about it. His mind was reeling with what was happening, and he felt tears springing up in his eyes, touched. Zero wasn't the romantic type, and he'd had a hard time with commitment. He understood how much nerve it must have taken the blonde to even ask. "Yes... you know it's yes! I don't even have to think about that..." He giggled, drawing a hand up to his mouth quickly, then hugged him again gently as Zero eased him up to a sitting position, fastening the locket around his neck and rubbing his back tenderly. "I only wish we could consummate the whole thing right now."

"Oh, I think we'll find _plenty_ of time for that. Once we're out of here it's smooth sailing." He kissed the smaller man on the lips soundly, content to hold him. "Happy Valentine's day, X."

"You too, Zero."


End file.
